Player Information
Asante T. Samuel was born on January 6, 1981 in Fort Lauderdale, FL. He attended Boyd Anderson High in Lauderdale Lakes, FL. At Central Florida, he played in 11 games as a freshman, starting once at free safety. He finished the year with 12 tackles, 4 passes defended, and 1 forced fumble. As a sophomore, he had 26 tackles, 2 interceptions, and 6 passes defended. He also returned 25 punts for 275 yards (11.0 avg) and 10 kickoffs for 168 yards (16.8 avg). He also blocked two field goals. As a junior, he became a full-fledged starter, starting all 11 games and earned All-Independent 1st team honors. He finished the year with 41 tackles, 2 interceptions for 18 yards, 13 passes defended, and 2 fumble recoveries. He returned 19 punts for 165 yards (8.7 avg) and blocked a field goal. As a senior, he earned 1st team All-Mid American Conference honors with 48 tackles, 4 interceptions, 15 passes defended, 1 forced fumble, while returning 19 punts for 233 yards (12.3 avg). He was originally selected by the New England Patriots in the fourth round (120th overall) of the 2003 NFL Draft. He was voted to the AFC Pro Bowl squad in 2007, and NFC squad in 2008, 2009, and 2010.
Career Statistics
| Year | Team | G | GS | Tack | Ast | Sack | Int | Yds | TD | FF | FR |
| 2003 | NE | 16 | 1 | 32 | 5 | 0.0 | 2 | 55 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2004 | NE | 13 | 8 | 39 | 2 | 0.0 | 1 | 34 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 2005 | NE | 15 | 15 | 54 | 10 | 0.0 | 3 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2006 | NE | 15 | 15 | 64 | 5 | 0.0 | 10 | 120 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2007 | NE | 16 | 14 | 46 | 3 | 0.0 | 6 | 89 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2008 | PHI | 15 | 15 | 36 | 4 | 0.0 | 4 | 64 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2009 | PHI | 16 | 16 | 40 | 1 | 0.0 | 9 | 117 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 2010 | PHI | 11 | 10 | 26 | 4 | 0.0 | 7 | 70 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2011 | PHI | 14 | 14 | 34 | 4 | 0.0 | 3 | 53 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2012 | ATL | 15 | 15 | 36 | 2 | 0.0 | 5 | 110 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| TOTALS | 146 | 123 | 407 | 40 | 0.0 | 50 | 727 | 6 | 6 | 3 | |
Transactions
Signed by New England Patriots on July 10, 2003 ... Re-signed by Patriots on August 28, 2007 ... Signed by Philadelphia Eagles on February 29, 2008 ... Traded by Eagles to Atlanta Falcons on April 25, 2012 in exchange for a sixth round pick. Signed to contract extension by Falcons on the same day.
Contract details
Signed a six-year, $56 million contract with the Eagles in 2008. Deal included $32 million in the first three years ... Signed by Falcons to a restructured three-year contract in 2012 worth $18.5 million. $4 million of that money is tied to escalators based around how many Pro Bowls and interceptions Samuel records. $4.375 million of his deal is guaranteed, including his first-year base salary, and initial roster bonus of $875,000 and a $2.25 million option bonus. He is due base salaries of: $1.25 million (2012); $3 million (2013); and $3.5 million (2014). He is also due roster bonuses of $1.675 million in 2013 and $1.625 million in 2014.